the five hour journey with the horses alone to
Albury on the Friday whilst mum made the
plane, train and bus trip (grooming duties were
calling). We were blessed with perfect weather,
excellent facilities and a friendly organising
committee at Albury. Now to do enough to earn
a place on the squad.
Leroy was on a steep learning curve and faced
his first EVA105 competition over a challenging
course. I decided to make this a training run for
him, taking my time around the course as it was
his first event at this height and he stepped up
to the mark and finished free of jumping faults
Trumby's 3* cross country was tough
considering this was the first opportunity we had
had to run 3* for the year. There were numerous
questions to answer and although Trumby took
it all in his stride during what is his best phase,
the course was to cause problems for some of
the more experienced horses.
I headed back to Sutton Forest on the Monday
whist mum headed back to Perth. It was around
this time we were saddened to hear of the
accident that Courtney Fraser was involved in
as she headed home from Albury. This accident
was to claim the life of a driver from one of the
other vehicles and both Courtney's horses. My
heartfelt sympathy goes out to all involved in
this tragedy.
News came through during the week that
Trumby and I had been called onto the squad
along with Craig Barrett, Natalie Blundell,
Seamus Marwood, Emma Scott and Stuart
Tinney. This involved heading to SIEC the
Monday before the competition to go into camp.
Being part of the squad proved to be a fantastic
experience for me. I learnt an amazing amount
and met many great people. It was a privilege
to work alongside the other squad members
with their wealth of experience that they so
generously shared. Coaching with Brett Parbury
for dressage and Sam Lyle for showjumping
was also helpful.
Leroy had a busy time at SIEC. He competed
in the Young Event Horse competition on the
Friday where he placed a creditable fourth.
This involved all three phases being completed
on the same day. He then tackled his second
EVA105 course and I was pleased that once
again he completed the weekend free of any
jumping faults.
Trumby was to post a PB for competition at this
level and finished in sixth place. Click Here to
watch Trumby go Cross Country..I was
Above: Jess and Legal Star during the showjumping phase at the Trans
Tasman at the SIEC.
Below: Legal Contender and Jess prior to the dressage phase of the Young
Event Horse competition at Albury.
Trans Tasman Adventure
Jess Manson
with